Yes to YAZ! - Se7en (1995)

Se7en (1995) has been one of my favorite movies for over two decades—always present, always there, reminding me of simpler days—and as a Thank you to it for bringing me joy when I most needed it, including on this past month which was full of important life lessons, I would like to share with you, my horror fam, my top 5 Yes to YAZ! list of all the things I love about the film:

5. Somerset – His wisdom, introspection, and well-mannered attitude offering comfort to those surrounding him in that dreary and maddening city full of crime and apathy.

4. The notebooks – Each one of them being unique-looking (and ASMR-inducing) pieces of art.

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3. The title cards – It was so satisfying seeing the days of the week coming one by one. (I am a sucker for well-thought-out graphic design.)

2. The seven sins – Such a basic concept executed so very well in both the immediacy of the story (hello gruesome death scenes with disturbing writing on the wall) and the ambiance element to it all which was the unknown presence of serial killer John Doe.

1. The Partners – The interaction between a veteran Homicide Detective on the verge of retirement, and a rookie all too eager to prove his worth, gave place to the unlikely friendship that was fundamental to solving each piece of the puzzle; without Somerset’s knowledge and years of experience (and connections), and without Mills’ know-it-all attitude and energy (and street smarts), neither one of them would have come close to seeing the ‘big picture’ plan that was John Doe’s pseudo preaching on the human race. For Somerset and Mills it was patience and trust which allowed them to succeed.

Bonus Point – The Chief of the SWAT team because OMG look at him! (Damn you my attraction to men in uniform…)

In Love and Fear,

-Marath

© 2016-2019

THIS FRESH BLOOD: Haunt (2019)

Well, well, well. I will be damned, the rumors were true, Haunt (2019) really is a good movie! If you have not watched it already and are game for an hour-and-a-half of good quality Horror fun, go to Amazon #notspons and enjoy the gory ride that is Haunt! (But wait, after you are done there, come back here and find out what I have to say about it, mmmkay?)  

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

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Haunt is not your typical haunted house story—thank goodness—as it avoids all the expected clichés and instead kicks you in the balls with its left turns and zigzags, all of them happening in a controlled small environment. But wait, I am getting ahead of myself.

The main character of the story is Harper, a college student who is in an abusive relationship with a man. He hits her. She is in denial. Her roommate, Bailey, confronts her and tells her she must break up with the alcoholic guy, but Harper brushes her off, after all, her black eye is covered up with make-up now, so nothing really happened…

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Bailey cares for Harper and in effort to not leave her alone, invites her to come along to a Halloween party. At the Halloween party they all seem to have a good time, they meet a few friends there, and later on decide to continue the festivities somewhere else. That else was a random Haunted House they found by accident, right when they moved to the side of the road and parked the car at Harper’s request, you see, Harper was feeling a little on edge and thought she saw Sam, her boyfriend, following them in his truck. False alarm… So the gang decides to give the Haunted House a chance and on their way they go.

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Right from the start things ‘look’ intense which only ignites the excitement of the friends, so when they arrive to a Safe and Not Safe zone they pay no mind and decide to split. Big mistake, for both teams. You see, the whole experience is a trap and they are about to get hunted by the owners who happen to be a bunch of sadistic, murderous, body-modification enthusiast. Yep, you read that last part right, they all have adorned (disfigured?) their faces and are so very proud of them that they cover them with vintage Halloween masks all the time (makes sense).

I am going to skip all the juicy details about all the kills since I believe they spoke by themselves (SO GOOD!), but all I will say is this, they would not have been so successful on their delivery had they not taken place inside that warehouse/amateur-looking haunted house. The fact that some of the rooms looked like something you could find at your own town, made by your weird neighbor from down the street, really brought it home and added a layer of plausibility to the disgusting, gory things you saw the friends go thru.

Right, but getting back to Harper, little by little we learn about her complex psyche and kind of see why she allows herself be abused by men. Life is complicated and so is she. But she is also strong and a fighter and pushes forward no matter what.

Harper has a major flashback in one of the rooms and the way she dealt with it was so satisfying to watch:

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Our Harper is not a little girl anymore. After all was said and done she showed us that with patience, determination, and a little help from a bunch of crazed maniacs, we all can gather enough strength to get to the other side of whatever stale mental prisons we thought we belonged in. Go forth.

In Love and Fear,

-Marath

© 2016-2019

Ay Dios Mio, Get Me a Xanax – 47 METERS DOWN (2017)

I just watched 47 Meters Down (2017) and let me tell you, it triggered anxious feelings in my body and made me wish I had chill pills available at my disposal… no joke, the movie was that intense!

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

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47 Meters Down tells the story of two sisters vacationing in Mexico, one of them is there to have fun and the other to prove that she is “capable” of having fun (guy drama, don’t ask). After a night of partying they decide to go scuba diving with the men they met and oh you better believe that it was a bad choice, but not because being adventurous is wrong, or because trusting total cute strangers on a foreign country is wrong, no, no, it was a bad choice because drama girl lied about knowing how to dive and, moreover, did not speak up when noticing how badly in shape the SEA ESTA (siesta = nap / sleeping with the fishes) was. Listen, I know nothing about scuba diving, but I can tell you that if I saw that the cage responsible for keeping me safe and away from sharks was all rusty, and that the chains and cables holding it looked like some flimsy pieces of whatever, you better believe I would be the first one saying No gracias.

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So, okay, the sisters make it to the cage, take a few pictures for the gram (ew, I hate that I said that), drop the camera and bam! It gets swallowed by a shark! No bueno. Do you know what else is No Bueno? The fact that the flimsy chains and cables break and release the cage to the bottom of the ocean, 47 meters down. Oh shit-o.

This is when the real movie begins.

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The monster, the bad guy, the villain of the movie is not the shark trying to eat the sisters, or el gringo businessman turning a blind eye to the lies he was told so he could make some cash, or the human nature of the females making them not trust their instincts just to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings, no, no, the ocean, the ocean is the one mutherf*cking enemy.

The ocean—not suited for air-breathing humans—is the one imposing all the obstacles for escaping, seeing, breathing, and surviving. Remember, the ocean is the home of all aquatic animal life and, yes, that includes scary-looking sharks. The sharks see food and they want to eat it, simple. On the other hand, the sisters don’t want to become food and don’t want to be eaten, not so simple.

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I am not going to tell you how the movie ends or if anyone dies, but I will say this, if you have not seen the movie and choose to watch it, please be prepared to experience some legit scary moments, and I don’t mean boo-moments, no, no, I mean oh-my-god-I-fee-I-can’t-breathe moments. Needless to say, the filmmakers executed beautifully what it must feel like to be in a dangerous situation deep in the ocean, trapped, in darkness, unable to communicate, with oxygen tanks running out, hurt, surrounded by sharks, with your instincts telling you to just swim straight up but knowing that if you do it then the pressure would kill you, but also knowing that if you do nothing then time would kill you, or that if you leave the cage then the sharks would kill you. F*ck. The movie was a real worst case scenario nightmare, a messed up catch-22 if you ask me. Ay dios mio!

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Adios amigos,

—Marath

© 2016-2019